India To Host BWF World Championships In 2026

The Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Tuesday confirmed that India has been awarded the hosting rights of the BWF World Championships in 2026 while Suzhou, China, will stage the BWF Sudirman Cup Finals 2023. Suzhou was due to host the championships in 2021, but with BWF unable to stage any tournaments in China this year, the event was switched to Vantaa in Finland. Suzhou will now stage the 2023 edition of the BWF World Mixed Team Championships, with original 2023 hosts India accepting the opportunity to host the BWF World Championships in 2026.

BWF Secretary General Thomas Lund said in a release, "Suzhou has demonstrated great capabilities in planning for the 2021 edition and we look forward to bringing the TotalEnergies BWF Sudirman Cup Finals back to China in 2023."

"We thank host organisers Suzhou, the Chinese Badminton Association, as well as the Badminton Association of India for their cooperation during this process," General Thomas Lund added.

The BWF World Championships is the most prestigious tournament in badminton. This is an individual championship where players compete for the title of World Champion.

There are five events offered -- men's singles, women's singles, men's and women's doubles, and mixed doubles.

First held in 1977 and originally hosted every two years, the BWF World Championships has, since 2003, been held every year except the year of the Summer Olympic Games.

Meanwhile, the Sudirman Cup is the World Team Championships, held every two years, and one of the most prestigious titles in the sport.

The cup is named after Dick Sudirman, a former Indonesian badminton player and the founder of the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI).

Until 2003 the Sudirman Cup took place alongside the World Badminton Championships (Individuals) before becoming a stand-alone Championships for the first time in Eindhoven, the Netherlands in 2003.